Tel Aviv: An Israeli farmer has grown the world’s heaviest strawberry, according to Guinness World Records.
At 289g, the strawberry was about five times the average weight of a regular berry of the local Ilan variety, said Nir Dai, a researcher at Israel’s Volcani Institute, where the strain was developed.
The strawberry was 18cm (7in) long and 34cm (13in) in circumference, the online Guinness entry said.
Chahi Ariel had been hoping he was on to a winner when he saw how big the fruit was growing on his family farm last year. He has been waiting for confirmation it was a record while keeping the giant strawberry in the freezer as proof.
“When we heard, it was an amazing feeling. I jumped in the car, laughed and sang,” said Ariel, proudly displaying his certificate on a laptop. “We’ve been waiting for this for a long time.”
Unusually cold weather in early 2021 slowed the strawberry’s ripening process, allowing it to continue gaining weight, according to the record book’s website.
The previous record was held by a Japanese farmer who discovered a 250g strawberry in his harvest in 2015.